Brief description Creating new employment opportunities within the organic food sector and establishing support programmes and cross-border networks that will make eco-entrepreneurs more competitive in domestic, regional and EU markets.
Region Intra Western Balkan borders
Countries Croatia (HR) – Serbia (SRB)
Location HR: Osijek-Baranja County,
SRB: Northern-Backa district
Type of project partners Regional government units
Public bodies/institutions
Size (total budget including EU grants) € 200,000 to € 500,000
Main themes Competitiveness, business and SME development, trade and investment
Agriculture and rural development
Keywords (Types of Activities) Study visits, exchanges and networking
Education and training
Research and studies
Publications, websites, databases
Marketing, promotional activities, awareness campaigns
Construction, repairs, cleaning up
Keywords (Aspects of Good Practice) Genuine cross-border dimension
Genuine cross-border impact
Innovative
Good sustainability

Background and Objectives
  • To create a business network of organic entrepreneurs from Osijek-Baranja county and Northern Bačka district and strengthen cross-border cooperation in the wider region.
  • To promote and establish innovative approaches in marketing and promotion of organic products.
  • To create market for domestic and regional organic products and thus boost the local economies.
  • To introduce modern ICT tools, establishing a support infrastructure, and increasing know-how and building capacities of organic and tourism related entrepreneurs.
Main activities The project has undertaken four groups of activities:

Mapping of potentials and creation of organic producers database:

  • Mapping of potentials for organic production
  • Creating database of organic producers

Capacity building of Eco-entrepreneurs:

  • Establishing educational video-web portal on organic production
  • Establishing resource centre for eco-entrepreneurs, including refurbishment of the centre, training for eco-entrepreneurs, providing consulting and marketing services to eco-entrepreneurs

Creating market for organic products – Education of consumers:

  • Organizing education seminars for consumer groups
  • Introducing organic food to pilot kindergartens, including kindergarten workshops and demonstrations, Organic Food Bazaar, Open Farm days
  • Media presentation on benefits of using organic food
  • Publications and visibility tools

Networking and establishing cross-border relations:

  • Study visit to Slavonian organic farms
  • Bio-fest and international conference in Subotica
  • Organizing Bio-fest in Osijek region
Main results The project created a cross-border business network making it operational and efficient, and offered and promoted new innovative approaches in the marketing and promotion of organic products. New business relationships were established between Croatian and Serbian eco-entrepreneurs.

Specific results were achieved include:

  • Mapping resources and creating database of Croatian and Serbian eco-entrepreneurs
  • Resource centre in Erdut was refurbished and made fully operational
  • Organic food was introduced to 45 kindergartens
  • Three “Bio Fests” organised (international conference, organic fair)
  • New web portal created and made operational with more than 14 000 users
  • Consumers educated and offered new venues for buying organic products
Aspects of good practice The project has been particularly innovative and with excellent sustainability and multiplier potential: mapping methodology and Dbase replicable to other regions/data being available on E-portal; new ICT media easily replicable to other areas of education, information dissemination and networking; know-how in methodology of consumer groups education and publications replicable.
Start and completion dates: 1.2.2011. – 31.07.2012
More information N/A

Partner MK: Women Association “Aureola”
Nëntori nr.16, 6330 Struga,
E-mail: aureola_6@yahoo.com
Partner AL: Association for Women with Social Problems
Lagja 2, Rruga “Sefer Efendiu”, Durres
Tel: +355 52234600